


Rey's Letter to Bazine

by Littlemistake



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-23
Updated: 2019-11-23
Packaged: 2021-02-26 05:59:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,276
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21538621
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Littlemistake/pseuds/Littlemistake
Summary: This is the text version of the letter in the Epilogue of Son of a Preacher Man for those who prefer text format.If you have opened this and are scratching your head, here is the story this letter is connected to:Son of a Preacher Man. Rated E, 19/19, Complete.In 1969, Pastor Han Solo and his son Ben arrive in a small town in the deep south. Rey is immediately drawn to Ben, but she soon senses that all is not what it seems when it comes to Ben and his father. What is the secret they are keeping, and will it tear Rey's world apart?
Comments: 3
Kudos: 11





	Rey's Letter to Bazine

“Rey Dameron, what is taking you so long?”

Rey huffed in the outraged indignation that was the sole domain of twelve year old girls.

“Dad, I told you we needed a better labelling system. The Christmas junk could be anywhere.” She shouted down the manhole.

“Look harder,” was the firm reply.

She grumbled as she dug through box after box looking for the missing lights. It was horribly unfair of her father to do this to her. She hated the attic; it was musty and a bit creepy. She had also watched “Nightmare on Elm Street” at Stacey Miller’s house the weekend before and it had terrified her. She was convinced Freddy Kruger was going to come for her in a dream and then she would be dead.

_ Bet Dad would be sorry he made me climb up into the crummy attic then, _ she thought. _ Would serve him right. _

She spied a dusty trunk in the corner, she didn’t think she would find what she was looking for there, but it couldn’t hurt to try. It also felt a little like opening a pirate’s treasure box, she thought to herself.

Just like  _ The Goonies _ .

Rey coughed from the dust that had settled on the lid as she opened the trunk. To her disappointment, there really wasn’t anything interesting as she eyed the contents. No secret stash of gold here.

The stack of envelopes caught her eye. They were addressed to her mom, and written in flowery, romantic cursive script. The one at the top was postmarked New York City, June 21 st , 1977, so eight years before.

She pulled the letter from the stack, turning it over to see who it was from, and recognised the name immediately.

Rey Dameron was only twelve, and a very curious twelve year old at that, but she knew better than to read her mother’s mail without permission. She held onto the stack as she continued to look for the Christmas lights.

Ten minutes later she was skipping down the stairs, the lights in one hand and the letters in the other. 

“Thank you peanut, was that so hard?” said her father as he plucked the lights from her hand, but not before he landed a kiss on her forehead.

“You are such a goober, Dad,” she replied, rolling her eyes in mock disdain. She didn’t really mean it, but there was no way she was letting him know that.

Her dad made his way over to the Christmas tree to begin threading the lights through the branches, while her annoying younger brother was on the sofa trying to break wind with his hand under his armpit.

“Barf,” she said, screwing her mouth in disgust.

“Bite me,” was Ben’s reply.

Remembering the letters in her hand, she went to find her mother. She found her sitting at the kitchen table, reading one of her glossy magazines.

“Mom, while I was looking for the Christmas lights, I found some old letters from Auntie Rey. Is it alright if I read them?”

Her mother looked at her quizzically for a moment. “Why do you want to?”

“Well Auntie Rey is cool, but she is old. I want to read about her when she was younger.”

Her mother laughed at the idea of old at thirty-five.

“Well sure, how about we read them together?”

“Alright,” said Rey, forgetting she was all grown up for a moment as she climbed onto her mother’s lap.

Rey pulled the first envelope from the stack, unfolding it before she began to read.

_ My dearest sister, _

_ It has taken me so long to find you, Ben had the best private detective look for you forever. You and Poe covered your tracks very well! But I cannot tell you how happy I was when I received the phone call that he had finally found you in Sacramento, and that you and Poe were still together and had a daughter. _

_ I have also been writing to Linda Anidala – remember her? She is still here in our home town, happy enough I think, but the news she shared with me was awfully interesting. Did you know that Mamma sold the farm to Mr. Canady in the years after we left? It seems that they had an arrangement whereby she could stay in the caretaker’s cottage until the end of her days. I suppose that was for the best, given that Armitage gambled away the family fortune the moment he took control of Hux Farm. As much as I don’t like to bear anyone ill will, I derive a special pleasure from it in this instance. It was nothing more than he deserved. _

_ I’m so glad you broke your engagement to him, I shudder to think what our lives would be like if you hadn’t. _

_ I suppose now I should probably move onto my own journey in the years since we last saw each other. _

_ Well, the day after you ran away, Ben and I did the same. We eloped, Pastor Han (more about him in a moment) married us in the back seat of his Falcon before taking us to live with Ben’s mother in New York. New York! _

_ It was hard at first, Ben nor I seemed to be prepared for what it meant to be married and responsible for ourselves. But we found our way eventually. I started college, and then eventually transferred to New York University to study nursing. We had so little, but so much, during those days. Thank goodness for Ben’s mother – without her footing the bill for our apartment I don’t know how I would have been able to graduate. But graduate I did, and was fortunate enough to start as a Paediatric Intensive Care Nurse at New York Children’s Hospital. I can’t tell you how proud I am every day I walk into work. I think the best part is being able to comfort a child and their family through a difficult time. The hours are challenging, but it is so worth it. _

_ As luck would have it, Ben keeps some pretty odd hours, too. He and his Uncle Chewie run the Kashyyyk Club together, I don’t know if you would have heard of it? In any case, Ben is in his element, rubbing shoulders with music greats, booking the next big sound. It brings me joy to see him so happy, I don’t think you would recognise him now. He fills a room with laughter and he absolutely dotes on our two children, Finn - who is ten and Bazine - who is three. _

_ We adopted Finn when he was five years old, I felt so strongly that our first child should have the same story as me – but to find love, acceptance and worth within a real family. He is growing up so fast. Bazine was a surprise, but a lovely one at that. We don’t have a lot of family help, Ben’s mother fights the good fight for the women’s liberation movement and Han, is well… Han. We have a nanny that helps when our schedules clash. It seems to work pretty well, and Ben is just as passionate about supporting me with my aspirations as he is for his own.  _

_ Bazine is the apple of her father’s eye and there is nothing he will not do for his little girl. We cannot decide who she is more like. I say it is Ben because she has a knack for weaving her way into your heart, and she also has the most beautiful mane of dark wavy hair. Ben insists that it is me she takes after, with her strong sense of right and wrong, she is always quick to point out any injustice she sees. _

_ Speaking of right and wrong, it turns out that Pastor Han was not really a Pastor in the true sense of the word. Han and Ben were running a bootlegging business right under our noses! Thank God I was able to convince Ben to go straight, so that we could have a future together.  _

_ Han also intended to go on the straight and narrow, but is always on the lookout for the next opportunity. He did Amway for a while, but found his actual calling (or so he says) doing the motivational speaking circuit, calling himself Rick Richardson. I’ll save you the cost of admission, it’s much like his sermons back in the south, but with far fewer references to scripture. Every now and again he makes noises about Ben and him going into business with each other again, but Ben just smiles and shakes his head. He knows he is on a great thing with Uncle Chewie. _

_ So I guess that is me, there is so much else to tell you but I want to wait until we meet again. I am very much looking forward to the day when I can share this with you in person, but Ben and I will never forget what you did for us. Without your encouragement, your bravery and your foresight I don’t know if I would have had the courage to leave with Ben that day. You showed me that I didn’t need to be passive or to fulfil the expectations that Mamma had for me. You wanted more for yourself, and you wanted more for me. _

_ Ben says that he would have come back for me no matter what, but the truth is I don’t know if I could have ever reconciled with the business with his father. Without you showing me (and providing me my adoption papers) what it was to fight for what you love, I would not have thought it possible to challenge the future Ben had in mind for us. _

_ When I look at the freedom and happiness my children have, secure and safe in their place in the world, I know that I did the right thing, and Ben does too. _

_ As much as I have no desire to return to that place, with its oppressive heat and oppressive expectations, the days you and I spent together on the porch swing, planning our futures, are still amongst the happiest memories I have. Our plans were so small, never venturing beyond the boundaries of the town – we had no idea of the big adventures that fate had in store for us, did we? _

_ Ben spared no expense to try and find out who my parents were, but without any luck. As much as the question remains, I eventually decided to let it go. I may never know my birth family and what happened to them, but I can make my peace with it. It makes it much easier when I see the family I have today, the one Ben and I created together. Along with you, they are the only family I truly need - and to show me who I truly am. _

_ I will be forever grateful that you are my sister, and I will forever love you. _

_ I hope one day we will have the opportunity to catch up our adventures face to face. Things are very busy at the hospital right now, but as soon as I can see a window I hope we can reunite. _

_ Until then, know the love I carry for you in my heart. _

_ Love Rey _

  
  


Rey Dameron looked at her mother, whose eyes were now damp with unshed tears. Her arms were gripped tightly around her daughter, and she was lost in thought.

“Wow, it was really different back then,” Rey said. “You were engaged before you married Dad? You always told me I would be grounded for life if I ran away, but you did.”

Her mother sniffed. 

“I had to run away, sweetheart. Your grandmother meant well, but she wanted me to marry a terrible, horrible man. I loved your father, and it wasn’t easy, but I know I made the right decision. If I try to make you marry an awful man like Armitage, you have my permission to run away as well.”

“Did everyone run away in the olden days? Auntie Rey and Uncle Ben did too.”

Her mother laughed. 

“No, but sometimes you have to make a hard choice, especially when your happiness depends on it. Things were harder back then, the expectations of women were different.” Her mother pushed a stray lock of hair behind her daughter’s ear. “All we were required to do was get married, have babies, and do as we were told.”

Rey looked at her mother and scoffed. “Ha! Like Dad could ever tell you what to do.”

“Lucky times have changed… well a little bit anyway,” was the reply, which was accompanied by a playful poke in her ribs.

Rey looked over the letter again.

“What you did for Auntie Rey and Uncle Ben was pretty cool,” Rey said thoughtfully. “It sounds like they owe you a lot.”

“Well, your Auntie Rey is very special to me. She was the only person I could turn to when things were difficult with your grandmother. Plus, I saw how much Auntie Rey and Uncle Ben loved each other – and how much they needed each other too. When you have something special like that, you have to hold on to it with all your might and never ever let go. But sometimes, things or people will get in your way. I didn’t want that for your Auntie and Uncle, so I did what I could to help.”

“I guess that makes you pretty cool, too. But don’t tell anyone I said that.”

Her mother laughed and hugged her tightly.

“I guess it does, sweetheart, I guess it does.”


End file.
